Headline, June 3, 2021

“The entire international community must unite to make effective decisions on green, sustainable development”

The following article is based on materials provided by the Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in Seoul to The Korea Post media for publication. The Korea Post marks its 36th anniversary this year, owns and operates five media, 3 in English and 2 in the Korean language.--Ed.  On May 30, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan, at the invitation of President Moon Jae-in of Korea, took part in the Second International Summit “Partnership for Green Growth and Global Goals 2030” (P4G), in Seoul, via videoconference. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan speaks at the Second International Summit “Partnership for Green Growth and Global Goals 2030” (P4G) in Seoul via videoconference. The agenda of the two-day forum included issues of overcoming the consequences of climate change, green recovery and ensuring carbon neutrality, as well as the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the implementation of the provisions of the Paris Climate Agreement. The event was attended by the heads of state and government, high-level representatives of the leading countries of the world, heads of authoritative international organizations.

Chung Seung-il takes office as the 21st CEO of KEPCO

Chung Seung-il, CEO of Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO), held an inauguration ceremony at KEPCO's headquarters in Naju, South Jeolla Province, on June 1, announcing his management policy as the 21st KEPCO head. Chung Seung-il, CEO of Korea Electric Power Corp., delivers an inaugural speech on June 1. In his inaugural address, CEO Chung stressed that it is time to seriously consider preemptive technological innovation and drastic energy system transformation in the entire energy sector during the great transition of the energy industry called Carbon Neutral. In particular, he said, “The energy paradigm in the carbon neutral era should be focused on decarbonization, decentralization, and intelligence.” “To become a leading company in the power paradigm change, we should know that the two pillars for decarbonization across the electricity industry are the drastic conversion and efficiency improvement of energy mix,” he said.

Approaches of the Uzbek government to overcome barriers to socio-econoic development

he following are excerpts from an article by Abdunarzarova N. of the Republic of Uzbekistan which was contributed to The Korea Post media by the Embassy of Uzbekistan in Seoul. The Korea Post is 36 years old this year, and owns and operates 3 English and 2 Korean-language news publications.--Ed. Today, domestic and foreign experts agree that the large-scale structural reforms undertaken in the Republic of Uzbekistan have mitigated the negative socio-economic consequences of the global coronavirus pandemic. It has been noted that the government's decisive response allowed Uzbekistan to demonstrate positive economic growth of 1.6%. Source: CIS Statistical Committee Figure 1 shows that Uzbekistan experienced positive GDP growth rates during the pandemic compared to Central Asia and Russia as a whole. In addition, experts make an optimistic forecast that the results of the reforms will allow the republic to not only achieve a recovery of its economy in 2021 but also to achieve tangible economic growth of around 5%. At the same time, the republic has experienced higher inflation rates than the aforementioned countries, which may pose certain risks for future macroeconomic stability.

S. Korea to Close COVID-19 Vaccine Reservations for Elderly Thursday

South Korea on Thursday will wrap up reservations for the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine from senior citizens aged 60 to 74. The government has been accepting reservations from the elderly, as well as patients with chronic respiratory diseases, teachers at kindergartens, childcare centers and for first and second grade at elementary schools and registered caregivers. About 75 percent of senior citizens have made reservations.  The application can be submitted online via the task force website (https://ncvr.kdca.go.kr) by the recipients or their family members. Health authorities urged the public to actively participate in the nationwide vaccination program, saying that if they fail to get vaccinated during the given time, they will have to wait until after October.

Arrest Warrant Issued for Air Force Officer over Alleged Sexual Harassment

A military court issued an arrest warrant for an Air Force officer Wednesday on charges of sexual harassment of a colleague who died in an apparent suicide. According to the Defense Ministry, the general military court issued an arrest warrant for the master sergeant, surnamed Jang, on charges of sexual harassment and inflicting injury. He was put under pre-trial detention. Jang is suspected of sexually harassing the victim inside a car on their way back to a base in the western city of Seosan after a private gathering in March. The victim was found dead at her residence on another base on May 22. The deceased’s family members claimed that the military failed to protect the victim and her superiors attempted to cover up the incident.  The suspect is said to have partially admitted to his charges.

Ex-Minister Cho: Step on Me and March Forward

Former Justice Minister Cho Kuk has called on the ruling Democratic Party(DP) to move beyond the corruption allegations surrounding him and continue the ruling bloc’s reform drives. Cho made the remark in a Facebook post on Wednesday. Sharing an excerpt from DP Chairman Song Young-gil's public apology earlier in the day, Cho said he humbly accepts the chief’s words. He said the ruling party should forget him and devote itself to reforms in areas including real estate, public livelihoods, prosecution and the media. The DP chief’s move came amid concerns by some ruling party members over possible negative pushback to Cho’s memoir, which hit bookshelves earlier in the week. Meanwhile, the disgraced ex-minister also shared Song’s words that the prosecution must apply the same standards used for his family when investigating alleged corruption surrounding the family of former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl.

N.K. leader's powerful sister likely to fill new 'first secretary' post in case of emergency: expert

The newly created No. 2 position at North Korea's ruling Workers' Party likely remains vacant and could be filled by leader Kim Jong-un's powerful sister Yo-jong in case of health issues or other emergencies, an expert said Wednesday. The North's ruling party revised its rules at a rare congress in January to include a new "first secretary" post right after leader Kim, drawing keen attention on who will assume the position. The revised rule stipulates that the first secretary is the "deputy" of the general secretary. "In case of an emergency, including those involving leader Kim's health, Kim Yo-jong is likely to take up this deputy position and act temporarily as the successor until power is handed over to Kim Jong-un's son," former Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok told reporters during an online briefing. Lee pointed out that the election of the first secretary does not require the opening of a party congress and can be easily appointed at a plenary session of the central committee. "This means that the post can be swiftly elected in case the leader has an emergency," he said.

Unification minister reiterates 'unwavering commitment' to Mount Kumgang tourism project

Unification Minister Lee In-young reiterated his commitment Tuesday to resume a long-suspended tourism project to North Korea's Mount Kumgang when he met with the head of Hyundai Group, which used to run tours to the scenic mountain. "We remain unwavering in our commitment to push ahead with projects like allowing individual tours to Mount Kumgang as soon as the coronavirus situation improves," Lee said during the meeting with Chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun of Hyundai Group. Lee voiced hope that the two Koreas could expand the cross-border project to allow individuals, beginning with families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War, to visit other regions, such as the eastern coastal town of Wonsan. He also said the recent summit meeting between President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden has created "sufficient" conditions to resume the long-stalled dialogue with North Korea.

Military prosecutors seek arrest warrant for Air Force officer in sexual harassment case

Military prosecutors sought an arrest warrant Wednesday for an Air Force noncommissioned officer on charges of sexually harassing a female colleague, the defense ministry said, amid mounting criticism that the military's mishandling of the case led to the victim taking her own life. Investigators also took the suspect, identified as master sergeant Jang, into custody. He is suspected of sexually harassing the victim of the same rank inside a car on their way back to the base in the western city of Seosan after a private gathering in March. A military court was to hold a hearing to decide whether to issue the warrant, the ministry said. The military came under intense criticism following revelations that the victim took her own life, and her family members claimed that her superiors tried to persuade her to reach a settlement with the alleged perpetrator without taking due protective measures.

Will Moon pardon Samsung chief?

President Moon Jae-in, who has so far excluded businesspeople when exercising his power to pardon criminals, may be mulling an exception for Lee Jae-yong, the imprisoned de facto leader of Samsung Group. According to Cheong Wa Dae sources, a subtle shift in the president’s tone was detected Wednesday at a luncheon meeting at the presidential office with the heads of the nation’s four largest conglomerates -- Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Kim Ki-nam, Hyundai Motor Chairman Chung Euisun, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo. He invited the leaders of the so-called “Big 4” groups to the luncheon to brief them on his recent summit with President Joe Biden and follow-up measures to support businesses. During the meeting, Chey, who doubles as chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, first brought up the issue of a pardon for the Samsung chief as he discussed the difficulties facing businesses amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Samsung’s Kim also stressed the role of a company’s leader in making a huge investment decision in the semiconductor industry. “I understand your concerns. There are also many people who share that view,” the president was quoted as saying by a ranking Cheong Wa Dae official who wished to be unnamed. “Now, at a time when the business environment is changing in unprecedented ways, I'm well aware that bolder action is required for businesses.”

Vaccination only way out of COVID crisis: Israeli envoy

Vaccines are the only way of the coronavirus pandemic and an aggressive inoculation campaign is essential, the Israeli ambassador to South Korea says. Israel -- where 59 percent of the population has been fully vaccinated as of this week, far outstripping the rest of the world -- has lifted most of its COVID-19 restrictions. “Early on a decision was made that Israel would pursue several tracks vis-a-vis several pharma companies and would be willing to pay above market cost,” Ambassador Akiva Tor said during an interview with The Korea Herald, noting that cost would be far less than what an unvaccinated economy would have to pay. Tor said that a relatively small population and a highly digitized universal health care system helped Israel speed ahead with the two-dose vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna. Israel’s population stands at about 9 million; Seoul, Korea’s capital, has about 9.6 million residents. Tor added that social distancing rules -- which were hard to maintain in his country, where spikes in infections continued to occur despite extensions -- were not reliable.

S. Korean companies rush to develop mRNA vaccine tech

South Korean pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are taking the initiative in the messenger RNA vaccine sector in hopes of developing new COVID-19 vaccines and building their capabilities to counter the next pandemic. Samsung Biologics, a major contract manufacturer of drugs, plans to add an mRNA vaccine production line at its facility in Songdo, Incheon, to potentially manufacture ingredients for new mRNA vaccines. ST Pharm, GeneOne Life Science and Hanmi Science are bent on developing homegrown mRNA vaccine products. Samsung Biologics on Monday announced the plan to build a new line that could produce mRNA vaccine ingredients by 2022. When finished, Samsung Biologics will be able to offer end-to-end mRNA vaccine manufacturing services from making the drug to the fill-finish process, which includes labeling, packaging and cold-chain storage.

Moon leaning toward pardon for jailed Samsung chief

Expectations are growing over a presidential pardon for Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, after President Moon Jae-in commented during a luncheon meeting with leaders of the nation's top four business groups Wednesday that he recognized there was a growing public consensus on granting one. Moon neither confirmed nor denied the possibility of the pardon, but his remarks about the consensus seemed to indicate that he was leaning toward releasing Korea's top tycoon. The President stressed such a consensus as one of the preconditions for pardoning Lee during a press conference last month, which was interpreted as neutral rhetoric compared to his earlier dismissals of debate on the issue. With the acknowledgment of the growing public consensus, there does appear to be a chance that Lee will be able to get back to work before his full jail term ends in July next year. He was imprisoned after being found guilty of bribery in a corruption scandal that led to the impeachment, trial and jailing of former President Park Geun-hye. Those in attendance at the luncheon were Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo and Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Kim Ki-nam, who participated in lieu of Lee.

Former prosecutor general Yoon gearing up for presidential race

Speculation is mounting that former prosecutor general Yoon Seok-youl will announce his presidential bid soon and probably join the conservative main opposition People Power Party (PPP). Fueling such speculation, Yoon, who quit the top prosecutor job after butting heads with President Moon Jae-in over prosecution reforms, has been meeting multiple PPP lawmakers recently. Yoon has yet to say whether he will run for president and rarely made public appearances until recently, although he has topped the opinion polls about potential presidential contenders. Among the PPP lawmakers Yoon has met since last week were: four-term lawmaker Kweon Seong-dong, five-term lawmaker Chung Jin-suk and economist-turned-lawmaker Yun Hee-suk. The former top prosecutor also had a phone conversation with three-term lawmaker Chang Je-won. Appearing at a radio show on local broadcaster KBS, Wednesday, Rep. Kweon said, "Yoon met or had phone conversations with several lawmakers of the PPP. These actions indicate that Yoon has not been considering creating a third party to gain a political base for the presidential bid."

Lee Kun-hee museum may be set up in Seoul; provincial governments protest

An empty plot in central Seoul is being considered by the government as the most preferred space to build a new museum to display the art collection donated by the late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee, according to the city government and the culture ministry, Wednesday. The move, however, is drawing strong protests from local governments in other parts of the country that are eager to host the so-called "Lee Kun-hee Museum," and are calling for regionally balanced development of the country's "cultural infrastructure." According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism recently asked whether it would house the museum on the land in Songhyeon-dong near Gyeongbok Palace, the ownership of which is currently being transferred from Korean Air to the city government. Following the offer, Seoul City answered it would review the idea positively ― it initially viewed making the plot a public park. City officials said building the museum there would create synergy in tourism as it could be linked to other tourist destinations nearby such as the palace, Insa-dong and Bukchon Hanok Village. However, provincial governments, which hoped to host the museum, are strongly protesting the news that the capital is being mentioned as a candidate site.

Johnson & Johnson Vaccination Fully Booked in 1 Day

Some 900,000 military reservists took just 17 hours to book their Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccination on Monday. Bookings were taken online on a first-come-first-served basis. The U.S. is supplying 1 million Janssen vaccines for reservists over 30 here, and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said 800,000 people had booked by 3:30 p.m. on Monday and another 100,000 an hour later. The remainder will be set aside for other recipients for now. The vaccines arrive in Korea on this Saturday aboard a U.S. military airplane and inoculations take place from June 10 to 20. Meanwhile, Koreans under 30 who were excluded from AstraZeneca vaccine shots for fear of side effects will get Pfizer injections instead from June 15. Vaccination of senior citizens over 75 or more will be completed by June 13, and then it is the turn of younger recipients. Some 190,000 police and firefighters under 30 will get Pfizer jabs and can make their booking from June 7. Meanwhile the daily tally of new coronavirus infections rose over 600 for the first time in six days with 667 cases as of Wednesday morning.

Former Prosecutor-General 'to Join Conservative Party'

Maverick former Prosecutor-General Yoon Seok-youl is minded to join the main opposition People Power Party after the ruling Minju Party hounded him out office, sources say. That would be an enormous coup for the PPP, which remains unpopular and in disarray despite recent wins in the April mayoral by-elections. Yoon is the most popular fantasy candidate for president after butting heads with President Moon Jae-in over prosecution reforms. One opposition lawmaker close to Yoon told the Chosun Ilbo, "Yoon is weighing the timing of joining the PPP now he's decided to run for president next year. There is a strong chance he will join the PPP in July or August." Another opposition source said, "He's been listening to various opinions about his political path and is leaning toward the PPP."

Moon Pledges to Raise Greenhouse Gas Reduction Target

President Moon Jae-in on Sunday pledged to boost Korea's greenhouse gas reduction target by 2030. At present, Korea is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 24.4 percent compared to 2017 levels, but Moon intends to raise that target to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. He made the remarks at the opening of the two-day P4G Summit in Seoul, which was held online. P4G stands for Partnering for Green Growth and Global Goals 2030. The first summit was held in Copenhagen in 2018. "The Korean government will sharply expand its proportion of environmental and official development assistance support by 2025," he said and added the country looks forward to bringing the UN climate conference to Seoul. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, French President Emmanuel Macron and EU Council President Charles Michel were also online for the summit.

N. Korea abandons two-track line of nuclear, economic development, pursues economic development through “self-sufficiency”

The Hankyoreh has confirmed that North Korea deleted language in the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) rules about a “two-track line” of nuclear and economic development and added language about building the economy through “self-sufficiency” during the Eighth WPK Congress, held in January. The Hankyoreh found Tuesday that a section stating that “the WPK holds to a parallel line of building the economy and building a nuclear arsenal” had been removed in its entirety. In place of the language about this “two-track line,” the revised version of the WPK rules adopted in January includes new language about the WPK “pushing to build the economy under the banner of self-sufficiency and strengthening the material-technical base of socialism.” The revised rules also state that “constantly improving the material and cultural lives of the Korean people” is the “supreme principle behind the WPK’s activity” and that that “the construction of a rich, powerful, and civilized socialist society” is the “WPK’s objective.” But while the new rules deleted language about the two-track line, they added a section stating that the WPK “ceaselessly reinforces the national defense by diligently strengthening the Republic’s armament in terms of political ideology and military technology and by developing autonomous national defense industries.”

Lee Jae-myung asks IOC to delete Dokdo from Tokyo Olympics map

Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung sent a letter to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Tuesday to request that it take “active measures” to delete Dokdo in a map on the Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games homepage where the islets are presented as Japanese territory. In the letter addressed to IOC President Thomas Bach, Lee said that as a part of the South Korean government, Gyeonggi Province could not remain silent about the violation of territorial sovereignty and dignity. Explaining that he was concerned about South Korean public opinion supporting a boycott of the Olympics, he asked the IOC to take immediate action to have Dokdo removed from the map, describing its inclusion as violating the “Olympic spirit.” He also complained that Japan was responding to the South Korean government’s sensible and reasonable calls for the deletion by insisting that Dokdo was Japanese territory. He described Japan’s actions as political, violent and invasive behavior that conflicts with international law and the spirit of the Olympics.

Japanese foreign minister says S. Korea moved goalposts on comfort women issue

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi accused the South Korean government of “moving the goalposts” in response to questions at the Diet of Japan that appeared to justify wartime military sexual slavery. The remarks were prompted by a question Monday from Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Haruko Arimura before the House of Councillors Committee on Oversight of Administration. “Are Japanese men the only people in the world to experience sexual desire during wartime?” Arimura asked. As examples, she pointed to the “comfort stations” provided to US troops during the Korean War, as well as the Recreation and Amusement Association that Japan created for US troops after its World War II defeat. “In other words, the question of how to deal with the sexual desires of soldiers away from home was an important and unavoidable task for US troops, South Korean troops and Japanese troops in the past,” she continued, adding that there was “a saying that the biggest enemy on the battlefield was venereal disease.”

South Korea to repair pedestrian bridge in Panmunjom

South Korea will begin the repair of a bridge in Panmunjom, where President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un had a behind-the-scenes conversation during the inter-Korean summit on April 27, 2018. According to the Ministry of Unification on Wednesday, it has selected a service provider for the geological survey on the area late last month after discussing its plans to repair some sections of the pedestrian bridge with the United Nations (UN) Command. The repair of the bridge will begin within this month after the geological survey is completed. “A safety investigation of the area is necessary as the sections of the bridge, which need to be repaired, are built over a wetland,” said an official from the Unification Ministry. The ground surface, on which the extended part of the bridge is built, reportedly sank last year. The consultation with the UN Command began in November last year, but the repair work has been delayed by six months as it was thought to be safe to start the construction after spring.

KSOE and Samsung Heavy Industries exceed last year’s orders

South Korean shipbuilding companies successfully won large ship orders. Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE), Hyundai Heavy Industries Group’s intermediate holding company for shipbuilding business, announced on Tuesday that it won 1.36 trillion won of orders to build 12 ships on Friday and Monday. The orders include four large LNG carriers and two super-large LPG carriers from shippers in Europe, Oceania, and Africa. They will be built at the dockyard of Hyundai Heavy Industries in Ulsan and Hyundai Mipo Dockyard for delivery to shippers by 2024. Samsung Heavy Industries also made a public announcement on large order wins on Tuesday, following its announcement on Monday. The company won orders to build two LNG carriers worth 417 billion won on Monday and four large container ships worth 529 billion won on Tuesday from a shipper in Oceania.

DP adopts confirmation hearing report on chief prosecutor nominee

The Democratic Party of Korea (DP) on Monday unilaterally adopted a confirmation report on prosecutor-general nominee Kim Oh-soo. President Moon Jae-in is expected to approve the appointment of the top prosecutor nominee on Tuesday. Prosecutor-general nominee Kim has become the latest in a list of 33 ministerial-level officials whose confirmation report was unilaterally adopted by the ruling party under the Moon Jae-in administration. Meanwhile, the Legislation and Judiciary Committee under the National Assembly adopted the confirmation report on the same day in a full session, which was boycotted by the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) lawmakers. The session did not last three minutes from the start to the end. Rep. Park Joo-min of the ruling party took the place of party leader Yoon Ho-joong. After the session, Rep. Park said they were not in the place to accept the opposition party’s demand to hold a confirmation hearing on the top prosecutor nominee again since a confirmation hearing had already been held once and the deadline set by the law had expired.

President Moon Hands a Letter of Appointment to Kim Oh-soo and Asks Him to “Play a Big Role in Creating a Fair Prosecution Service”

On June 1, President Moon Jae-in said to the newly appointed prosecutor general, Kim Oh-soo, “I ask that you lead the prosecutors, so they can be proud of being voluntary executors of reforms aiding such changes to take root in the Prosecution Service, including the newly adjusted authority over investigations between the police and prosecutors.” This day, President Moon handed Kim a letter of appointment at Cheongwadae and in the private meeting that followed, the president said, “I trust that you will play a big role in helping the Prosecution Service become a just agency that can meet the expectations of the people,” according to a written briefing by Cheongwadae spokesperson Park Kyung-mee. Kim will actually be the last prosecutor general appointed by the incumbent government, so the president appears to have requested Kim’s support in helping the institutional reforms that the government had promoted in the last four years to take root in the Prosecution Service. In particular, the president’s mention of a just Prosecution Service drew attention for it came at a time when politicians are fiercely debating over a memoir published by the former justice minister Cho Kuk, which includes the prosecutors’ investigation.

South Korea to Receive 1 Million Doses of the Janssen Vaccine Provided by the U.S.

One million doses (for one million people) of the Janssen vaccine given by the United States government will arrive in South Korea this week. This is nearly twice as many doses (550,000) initially promised at the bilateral summit, and the South Korean government plans to administer the vaccines to members of the reserve forces and civil defense aged 30 and older on a first-come, first-served basis. In a press briefing at the government office in Seoul on May 30, Jung Eun-kyeong, head of the COVID-19 vaccination response team (chief of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency) said, “The U.S. administration promised to give us 1,012,800 doses of the Janssen vaccine in close working-level discussions between the two governments following the bilateral summit.” She further said, “For swift inoculation, we will send our military aircraft to the U.S. in early June and bring the vaccines to our country.” Thanks to the Janssen vaccines from the U.S. administration, South Korea has now secured vaccines for a total of 100 million people. Disease control authorities decided to administer the Janssen vaccine to members of the reserve forces (538,000), civil defense (3 million), people related to national defense and foreign affairs (137,000) including civil servants in the defense and foreign ministries and military families.

Limit the Earth’s Temperature Increase to 1.5°C above Pre-Industrial Levels: P4G Adopts the Seoul Declaration

On May 31, the 2021 P4G Seoul Summit adopted the Seoul Declaration, which stated that leading countries in climate action and developing countries would take part in a wide range of responses to the climate crisis. In the declaration, members of the Partnering for Green Growth and the Global Goals (P4G) agreed to limit the Earth’s temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels (1850-1900) in line with the Paris Agreement through green recovery, to accelerate the energy transition away from fossil fuels, and to resolve the problem of marine plastics. President Moon Jae-in pledged to act as the bridge between advanced and developing nations and promised to expand support for the international community. The Seoul Declaration was supported by 38 of the 47 countries, nine of the 21 international organizations, and three individuals that took part in the P4G summit. It recognized the gravity of the climate crisis and stated the international community’s actions to overcome the problem.

Samsung, Hyundai, SK and LG chiefs invited to Blue House for contribution to summit talks

President Moon Jae-in thanked chiefs of top four business groups for their contribution to strengthening alliance between Korea and the United States through their generous $39.4 billion investment pledges in the U.S. during a lunch meeting Wednesday. SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun, LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo and Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Kim Ki-nam in place of the group chair Jay Y. Lee behind bars were invited. It is the first time Moon hosted a separate meal for top tycoons since taking office in May 2017. Whether there had been mention of a presidential pardon for Lee of Samsung was not immediately known.

Ground breaks to build the world’s first energy-focused university KENTECT

Ground for the Korea Institute of Energy Technology (KENTECT) was broken Tuesday in Naju, southern city in Korea to set up a four-year degree university specializing in energy technology. KENTECT will open in March next year with lecture rooms temporarily prepared in nearby buildings. Construction of the 384,083 ㎡ campus is to be completed by 2025. Convention center and faculty houses are to be added by 2030.

Korea’s inflation in May hits 2.6%, strongest in 9 yrs, bond prices tumble on rate hike bet

South Korea’s inflation rate in May was strongest in nine years amid price strengthening across the board from high commodity and food prices against pandemic-ridden year-ago period and revived demand from economic recovery. According to Statistics Korea on Wednesday, the country’s consumer price index (CPI) rose 2.6 percent year over year to 107.46 in May to mark the steepest increase since April 2012. The headline inflation has been picking up speed this year, adding 0.6 percent in January, 1.1 percent in February, 1.5 percent in March, and 2.3 percent in April. The acceleration in May was driven by 12.1 percent in agricultural, livestock and fishery product prices in the aftermath of harvest depression and avian influenza.

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